How this calculator works
A reading speed is simply the words read divided by the time taken. If you time a session, multiply the pages by an estimate of the words on a page, then divide by the minutes. From that speed the calculator derives pages an hour and minutes a page, which are easier to use when planning a single sitting. Multiplying the words read in a day by 365.25 and dividing by the words in a book gives the books a year, and the table shows how that changes if you find a little more time each day.
Formula
words a minute = pages read x words per page / minutes. pages an hour = words a minute x 60 / words per page. minutes a page = words per page / words a minute. books a year = minutes a day x words a minute x 365.25 / (pages per book x words per page).
Worked example
Reading 30 pages in 60 minutes at 300 words a page is 9,000 words in an hour, or 150 words a minute, 30 pages an hour and 2 minutes a page. At 30 minutes a day that is 456 hours a year of reading and about 30 books of 90,000 words.
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Frequently asked questions
How many words should I read to measure my speed?
At least 1,000, which is about three to four pages of ordinary print. Short samples exaggerate the effect of the first page, where you are still settling into the text.
Why is my speed lower on a screen?
Scrolling, notifications and smaller pages all reduce the count. Measure on the format you actually read, and turn off alerts for the timed session so the figure means something.
Is a faster reading speed always better?
No. Speed matters for planning and for text you only need to scan. For study, technical material or fiction you want to savour, slower reading with recall is usually more valuable than finishing more books.
Why does 365.25 appear?
It is the average length of a calendar year including leap years. Using 365 changes annual totals by less than a third of one percent, so the difference is not worth worrying about.